Abnormal electrocardiogram findings are common in NBA players

Bottom Line: About 1 in 5 professional basketball players had abnormalities on their electrocardiograms (ECGs), some but not all of which were explained by changes in the shape and size of their hearts as a result of athletic training.

Why The Research Is Interesting: Because of rare but high-profile instances of cardiac death among professional athletes there is intense interest in identifying test markers of abnormal heart function that may put players at risk. The National Basketball Association (NBA) mandates annual cardiac screening to ensure the safety of its players. Athletes are known to have changes in their hearts and ECG patterns appropriate to their intense athletic training, so athlete-specific criteria have been developed to distinguish normal from abnormal ECG findings. This study investigates how those criteria perform in NBA athletes.

Who and When: NBA athletes (n = 404) who participated in the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 seasons, and participants in the 2014 and 2015 NBA predraft combines (n = 115).

How (Study Design): This is a descriptive study, so the researchers did not gather information about underlying causes for the findings and cannot make conclusions about their medical or athletic significance.

Authors: David J. Engel, M.D., of the Columbia University Medical Center, New York, and coauthors.